Senior Manager Strategic Sourcing – External Manufacturing

This is what you will do:

• ​The Senior Manager, Strategic Sourcing – External Manufacturing leads sourcing strategy and commercial execution across the external manufacturing category supporting commercial and late-stage development supply networks, with a primary focus on Phase III, launch readiness, and commercial supply continuity. 

  The role has responsibility across Biologic Drug Substance, Drug Product, Finished Product, Packaging, Labelling, and Distribution, ensuring external supply solutions are secure, compliant, cost-effective, resilient, and scalable to meet portfolio, launch, and in-market requirements. 

  Working closely with Global stakeholders across External Manufacturing & Operations (E&MO), Technical Operations, Quality, Supply Chain, Commercial, Regulatory, Finance, and other key functions, the role supports effective supplier selection, contracting, capacity planning, and partner management to meet evolving business needs. It also contributes to data- and digital-enabled procurement excellence, including the use of AI-enabled tools and automation, while incorporating sustainability, responsible sourcing, and long-term supply resilience into category strategies and commercial plans. 

  You will be responsible for:

  Business Partnership & Category Leadership

  • Partner with stakeholders to understand business needs and translate them into sourcing strategies and execution plans for late-stage development, launch, and commercial supply. 

  • Lead category and sourcing strategies aligned to business priorities, market demand, product lifecycle requirements, and external supply network needs. 

  • Provide commercial and market insights, including supplier landscape, capacity, capability, risk, cost, and benchmarking analysis, to support decision-making. 

  • Support make-versus-buy, network optimisation, launch readiness, capacity planning, and continuity of supply to strengthen resilience and flexibility across the supply base. 

  Strategic Sourcing & Contracting

  • Lead end-to-end sourcing activities across external manufacturing, including EoI, RFI, RFP, RFQ, supplier evaluation, negotiation, and contract award. 

  • Drive sourcing execution and supplier selection, including CMO engagements, ensuring technical, quality, supply, and commercial requirements are addressed. 

  • Lead contract development and negotiation with Legal, Quality, Technical, CMC, and business stakeholders, including CDAs, MSAs, and SOWs. 

  • Ensure sourcing and contracting compliance with Alexion procurement policies. 

  • Incorporate geopolitical and market intelligence into sourcing strategies, including diversification and dual-/multi-sourcing approaches to support business continuity. 

  Financial & Value Delivery

  • Drive total cost of ownership optimisation through cost modelling, negotiation, benchmarking, demand consolidation, and value identification. 

  • Lead savings, cost reduction, cost avoidance, and broader value delivery initiatives in support of procurement and business targets. 

  • Support business cases and decision-making through commercial insight, financial analysis, and market data. 

  • Use digital, data-driven, and AI-enabled approaches to improve sourcing effectiveness, decision quality, and procurement efficiency. 

  You will need to have:

  • Experience in strategic sourcing, procurement, or category management within GMP pharmaceutical or biotech external manufacturing environments. 

  • Proven success in complex commercial negotiations, business issue resolution, and strategic supplier management. 

  • Experience working across global, cross-functional teams with the ability to influence senior stakeholders. 

  • Strong project management, analytical, financial, and communication skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities in a complex environment. 

  • Experience in spend analysis and reporting to support sourcing and category decisions. 

  • Working knowledge of manufacturing, quality, and regulatory requirements in the biotech/pharmaceutical industry. 

  • Experience supporting commercial supply, launch readiness, or late-stage development programs. 

  • Ability to travel 10%. 

  We would prefer for you to have:

  • A Bachelor’s degree in Science, Business, Procurement, or a related discipline. 

  • Experience supporting clinical development or early-stage supply networks. 

  • Experience with Coupa. 

  • Experience using digital procurement tools, analytics platforms, or AI-enabled sourcing solutions. 

Date Posted

15-Jun-2026

Closing Date

28-Jun-2026

Our mission is to build an inclusive and equitable environment. We want people to feel they belong at AstraZeneca and Alexion, starting with our recruitment process. We welcome and consider applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of characteristics. We offer reasonable adjustments/accommodations to help all candidates to perform at their best. If you have a need for any adjustments/accommodations, please complete the section in the application form.